Canadian Premiere
In her third film with VIFF mainstay Hong Sangsoo, Isabelle Huppert plays a mysterious Frenchwoman abroad in South Korea. Iris is her name, and as the movie opens she’s giving a most unconventional language lesson to Isong (Kim Seungyun), a novice French learner and amateur musician. Next in Iris’s schedule are Wonju (Lee Hyeyoung) and Haesoon (Kwon Haehyo), a couple for whom instruction will involve significant quantities of booze. As we follow this quirky lady through a series of encounters, Hong deploys suggestive repetition, with motifs that recur from scene to scene—only to break the pattern by introducing Iris’s much-younger boyfriend Inguk (Ha Seongguk)…
Hong is a major filmmaker of modest means: out of awkward social encounters, relatable human folly, and teasing enigmas, he’s built one of contemporary cinema’s most impressive oeuvres. Here he explores cultural difference with a unique method but typically humorous results. Much like the Korean poetry it showcases, A Traveler’s Needs is deceptively small-scale and delicately profound—a lovely little work of art.
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize, Berlin 2024
Media Partner
Community Partner
Isabelle Huppert, Lee Hyeyoung, Kwon Haehyo, Cho Yunhee, Ha Seongguk
South Korea
2024
In English, French and Korean with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits & Director
Producer
Hong Sangsoo
Screenwriter
Hong Sangsoo
Cinematography
Hong Sangsoo
Editor
Hong Sangsoo
Original Music
Hong Sangsoo
Hong Sangsoo 홍상수
Hong Sangsoo was born in Seoul, South Korea on Oct. 25, 1960. He studied at Chung-Ang University, California College of the Arts, and the Art Institute of Chicago. He made his first feature film in 1996. Since then he has made 31 feature films and a few short films.
Filmography: The Power of Kangwon Province (1998); A Tale of Cinema (2005); The Day He Arrives (2011); Right Now, Wrong Then (2015); On the Beach at Night Alone (2017); Introduction (2021)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Holy Days
After his mom passes, Brian (Elijah Tamati) is comforted by Sisters Agnes, Luke and Mary Clare (Judy Davis, Miriam Margolyes and Jacki Weaver, respectively). The quirky quartet hit the road to save their convent from being sold to a property developer.
Two Pianos
Once promising concert pianist Mathias (François Civil) returns to his native Lyon after a long absence. He's here to pay homage to his mentor, Elena (Charlotte Rampling). But a chance encounter with an old flame sends him spiraling.
The Golden Spurtle
Each year the sleepy highland village of Carrbridge awakens with excitement as locals and competitors from around the globe vie for the honour of winning The Golden Spurtle in the World Porridge Making Championships.
Best Boy
Sibling rivalry is the name of the game in Jesse Noah Klein's pitch black comedy. Eli, Lawrence and Phillip (who's a woman) reunite after the passing of their father and, in accordance with his last wishes, compete for the prized title of "Best Boy".
Lucid
Art student Mia is struggling with a make-or-break assignment, a self-portrait. It's only when grandma lets slip that her mom used to hypnotize her as a child to blank out the bad bits that she realizes the severity of the challenge...